under the stars
by messenger bird
Summary: two silhouettes painted black against the galaxies. cloud.sora.


disclaimer: these characters are not mine...so don't sue.

warning: boyxboy kissing and love confessions.. nothing big. but if you don't like it, don't read it.

onwards.

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The moon was sliced in half tonight, dangled in the dark sky with celestial fireflies blinking around it.

Two obviously adolescent figures sat on a rooftop, their faint shadows cast by their forms in the moonlight almost identical, save for the slight difference in height; both had almost the same hairstyle, their skulls crowned in defiant spikes that had no regard for gravity.

Innocent, childlike bright azure eyes stared in awe up at the skies, despite the fact that he and the other had been here on this roof countless other times, spending their nights stargazing until it was a battle to stay awake. Now staying awake through the night was just habit.

"Sora," his companion muttered, a half-smile on his face. "Sora, you've sat up here with me for ten years' worth of nights, and you still show the same amount of interest as you did when we were seven."

His intense staring contest with the stars broken, the brunette turned to his blond friend and poked his bottom lip out in an award-winning pout. "But Cloud," he whined, "they're just so…amazing."

Cloud had to admit, the past couple nights he had been staring not at the star-spattered sky, but at Sora. The humid August-night air was suppressing, and the sight of the brunette's innocently flawless face outlined with starlight made it even harder to breathe.

"But don't you ever get tired of staring up at the sky?" the blond argued good-naturedly, tilting his head a little and poking Sora in the side, where he knew the brunette was ticklish. Sora promptly squealed and mock-angrily swatted away the offending hand as if he were still a seven-year-old.

"Cloud!" The brunette's indignant squawk widened the rare grin on Cloud's face. "What has gotten into you today?" Sora reprimanded, a smile warring with the stern frown on his face. Despite his joking tone, the question was serious. Cloud was more lighthearted sometimes around him, but never like this.

"Revenge is imminent, Cloud!" The brunette moved to crawl on his hands and knees towards his taller friend, the stern expression replaced with a playful grin. Sora made to grab the blond with his right hand, left hand digging into the rough shingles for support. Cloud just backed away, grin still plastered on his face and laughter bubbling up his throat.

"Can't catch me, Sora," he laughed, azure eyes unshielded and warm. "Too slow!"

Instead of rising to the bait, the brunette huffed and plopped back down on the cool shingles, arms crossed and pout in place. He mumbled something under his breath and Cloud's playful smile disappeared instantly, a look of worry crossing his features.

"Hey, Sor," he murmured, crawling to the brunette and unexpectedly wrapping him in a caring embrace, pulling him flush against his chest. "I didn't mean it."

"That's not it," the brunette spoke up, his tone harsher than intended. He pulled away just enough to glare up at Cloud, his wounded bright eyes blazing and filled with angry tears. He sniffled and his voice cracked as he continued.

"I'm just…I don't _know_, Cloud. I've always wanted to be like you. I look up to you, Cloud; you've always been my idol. Everything I'm not, everything I want, but I'm always in your shadow."

He returned his face to Cloud's chest with more force than necessary, his eyes burning with tears. His arms wrapped tightly, unconsciously around the blond, pulling him closer, breathing in his warm, familiar scent.

"I can't help it, Cloud. I can't help but to love you, to want to keep you for my own...forever."

The elder of the two almost didn't catch the last mumbled confession through the brunette's muffled sobs, but he could've sworn his heart stopped in its tracks. He slowly peeled Sora from his chest, just far enough to look him in the eye; icy but caring Mako-stained blue connecting and locking with darker, pained azure.

"What was that?" he whispered, his gaze soft with something inscrutable brewing in their depths.

Sora cringed, mortified, realizing he had spilled his darkest secret. "N-Nothing, disregard that, Clou—"

"No, tell me. Repeat what you said." His eyes were blazing now, burning with that same unreadable tint.

"I…love you."

"Sora," Cloud muttered, pulling him in for another warm hug. "Sora, Sora."

The blond pulled back once more and peered down at his best friend and crush for gods know how long, searching his gaze with a slow half-smile spreading across his face.

Sora trembled as the world crashed down with Cloud's lips on his, his eyes fluttering shut. The kiss was chaste and loving, lingering even as two pairs of lungs began to burn with lack of fresh oxygen.

The stars above were smiling as the two slowly pulled apart; the wind wrapped around them, the whole world seemingly coalescing with nothingness as they simply drifted in their sublime bliss.

It was everything they had ever wanted and more.

The stars reflected in Sora's eyes, disappearing for an instant as he closed them and rested his head on Cloud's chest, a sweet smile tilting up his tingling lips.

"How long I've been waiting to hear those words…"

He could feel Cloud's voice as he spoke. He listened as the blond continued.

"I'll always love you, Sor…"

His lips touched to Sora's soft hair, both their gazes lifting to the heavens to see a single star skating across the midnight ink.

"Always."

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End file.
